"We must be ready to dare all for our country. For history does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid. We must acquire proficiency in defense and display stamina in purpose." - President Eisenhower, First Inaugural Address

U. S. Grant, The Autobiography of General Ulysses S Grant: Memoirs of the Civil War by Ulysses S Grant: Mark Twain played ahand in publishing what may be one of the great tales of all time - Grant was broke, working for poverty wages, when he was called to lead some other volunteers in the early days of the Civil War - and, well, the rest of the story is well known. Naval connection? Grant used amphibious operations in his war to control the rivers that were the great highways of the time. He also used Union gunboats as floating artillery in support of shore operations . . .

Barbara W. Tuchman, The Zimmermann Telegram: Among other things, a great introduction to international political scheming. If you thought the code breakers of WWII saved the U.S. bacon at Midway, you need to read about how Royal Navy code breakers uncovered a WWI plot by Germany, which was planning to return to unrestricted submarine warfare, to forge an alliance with Mexico in which Mexico might get Texas, New Mexico and Arizona back and to arrange for Japan to join forces against the U.S. so the U.S. would be distracted and unable to support the Allies.

Barbara W. Tuchman, The Guns of August: WWI, again, when the German battle cruiser Goeben, the subject of a chapter in the book, changed history. The author noted: "No other single exploit of the war cast so long a shadow upon the world as the voyage accomplished by their commander during the next seven days."

Rick Atkinson, An Army at Dawn: About the American introduction of troops into North Africa and lays out the steep learning curve required by the Army-Navy team in working on amphibious operations. I think it is safe to say that without those lessons, the eventual landings in Normandy would not have gone as smoothly as they did - and we all know that part of the Normandy landings at Omaha Beach weren't all that smooth. Out of the fire of North Africa came a core of battle-hardened troops and generals like Patton and Bradley; admirals like Kent Hewitt. Eisenhower learned how to command a coalition in which none of the "allies" seem to have liked each other.

Francis Parkman, Montcalm and Wolfe: Recounts the English victory on the banks of the Saint Lawrence River that decided the future of North America as anEnglish territory (until the American revolution, 17 years later). Lakes, rivers and access to the sea meant everything and a daring amphibious landing decided the fate of Quebec City and of Canada. George Washington got much of his military training during the French and Indian War (Seven Years War). Parkman has fallen out of favor with many historians but some also consider him the first great American historian.

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EagleSpeak

About EagleSpeak

The main focus of this blog is maritime security. Other matters may appear. I am a retired attorney and a retired Navy Reserve Captain (Surface Warfare). Opinions expressed herein are my own. Sometimes I have the experience to back them up. Your opinions may vary. Don't panic. Feel free to disagree, that's what free speech is all about.
Nothing contained herein should be confused as me giving legal advice to anyone. If you are confused, welcome to the club. All mistakes herein are my fault. I have sufficient academic credentials to be dangerous to myself and to others.
Comment moderation is at my discretion, so your comments may never appear. You can start your own blog for free and comment there all you want. I enjoy a healthy debate, but not arguing with trolls. If you can't comment without using intemperate language, go someplace else., Under the header: USS Higgins (DDG 76) transits the Arabian Gulf alongside the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71). (U.S. Navy photo by MC3 Anthony J. Rivera/Released)